Falcons, Titans are in if they win, but will they?
It’s so simple, this formula that both the Atlanta Falcons and Tennessee Titans must follow on New Year’s Eve to assure themselves spots in the NFL playoffs.
Just win, baby. That’s all it takes.
Let the Falcons beat the visiting Carolina Panthers on Sunday afternoon inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium and they’re back in the NFC playoffs attempting to avenge last season’s Super Bowl collapse against New England. Let the Titans defeat visiting Jacksonville at Nissan Stadium and they’ll reach the postseason for the first time since the 2008 schedule.
With both kickoffs set for 4:25 EST, expect television remote controls throughout the Tennessee Valley and northern Georgia to be working overtime.
But which team should win? Should they both reach the postseason? And if they do, which team has a greater chance to advance?
As uneven as they’ve played all season — and no Super Bowl loser has returned to the NFL championship game the following season since the Buffalo Bills lost their fourth straight Super Bowl at the close of the 1993 season — the Falcons remain the more solid-looking team. Yes, they failed to score on two separate occasions from the Saints’ 1-yard line Sunday, but they got to the 1, and those scores would have given them a win instead of a loss.
The Birds have won at Seattle, whipped Dallas and stifled Green Bay before the Pack lost Aaron Rodgers to injury for a bit. They’re home and they should be ready to win and advance. They even have revenge on their side, since they fell at Carolina by a narrow 20-17 score.
With the Panthers already assured of the postseason, one must also wonder how completely they’ll attempt to win this game. This won’t be an out-and-out tank job, but Carolina might at least strongly consider resting some of its players.
However, should Atlanta lose, don’t be surprised if offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian is shown the door, given the relative struggles of the Falcons offense under his watch this season.
As for the Titans, the Jaguars also already have clinched the playoffs, though with a loss this past Sunday at San Francisco — and a rather resounding 37-16 setback to Tennessee early in the season — the Jags might need and want a win. Most folks would rather not enter the postseason on a two-game losing streak.
“I would expect a full game plan, just like a game they have to win,” Titans coach Mike Mularkey said on the team’s website Tuesday. “Coming off a loss, I am sure they don’t want to go into the playoffs with another one, so I would expect we’re going to get the best of them.”
That Sept. 17 win in Jacksonville was arguably the Titans’ best of the year, especially given the Jags’ turnaround from that point forward. After all, it’s Jacksonville, not Tennessee that already is assured a playoff berth.
It’s also Carolina and not Atlanta that’s already in the postseason.
And because of that you have to believe the more desperate team holds the advantage, which means neither the Titans nor the Falcons should lose Sunday due to lack of interest or preparation.
But the Titans have lost their last three games. They did look better against the Rams on Sunday. They had moments, just not quite enough of them. And now they may not have running back DeMarco Murray either this game or in the playoffs, if they get in.
“Day to day,” Mularkey said Tuesday of Murray’s possible availability. And that was about all he said.
The Titans would seem to need Murray against the Jags. They undoubtedly need the crowd to show up in full throat and fill the seats. The Titans have won nine of their last 11 home games, and the crowd noise often has seemed to contribute to those wins.
“The fans are as big a part of what goes on in that stadium, supporting us with the noise, and they have seen the results,” Mularkey said. “When we get that crowd going, it is a great ally for our football team.
“Our team feeds off of our crowd, there’s no question about it. That’s why we’ve had the home success that we’ve had over the last year and a half. A lot of it is because of our fan support. … We need (the support) more than ever this week.”
What they need is for Mularkey to coach great, quarterback Marcus Mariota to play great and for Murray to get on the field for at least a dozen plays or so. Even then there is no guarantee that Tennessee is yet built for these moments.
There may need to be a reassessment of this franchise should the Titans lose. With a relatively easy schedule, a third-year quarterback who was supposed to be playing like an elite performer and a defense that’s done its job far more times than not, Tennessee still seems more unknown than untouchable.
The Titans might win, but they also might lose, so the franchise remains vulnerable to the moment being too big for the current roster to deliver a victory when most needed.
The Falcons know how to get to the posteason. They’ve just never been able to complete the deal once in the mix.
Look for both those trends to hold true this Sunday. The Titans lose; the Falcons win. But watching how it all plays out should be worth buying extra batteries for the TV remotes on the final day and night of 2017.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@ timesfreepress.com.